If You Think About It, Gabi Wasn’t That Bad In Attack on Titan

Daksh Chaudhary
Apr 21
3 min read

Updated: Apr 23

Attack on Titan fans love to hate Gabi Braun. She’s loud, stubborn, and worst of all, she killed Sasha. But before you grab your pitchforks, let’s ask a simple question: Is Gabi really the monster fans make her out to be? Or is she just a mirror reflecting the Attack on Titan's darkest reality?

Gabi isn’t a hero. She’s a child soldier brainwashed by Marley, desperate to prove her worth in a world that hates her. Sound familiar? She’s basically Eren Yeager 2.0. So why do fans forgive Eren’s war crimes but curse Gabi’s? Let’s unpack the double standard and why Gabi deserves a second look.

ALSO READ: Attack on Titan: Were The Titans Actually Created To Save Humanity?

Gabi’s Brainwashing: Marley’s Perfect Soldier

Gabi didn’t choose to hate Paradis. From birth, Marley drilled into her head that Eldians on the island were devils. She was taught that killing them would make her a hero, a good Eldian worthy of respect. This is the same propaganda that made Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie into Warriors.

Think about Eren’s rage in Season 1. He wasn’t born hating Titans, he learned it after his mom died. Gabi’s hatred is the same: learned, not innate. She’s a product of her environment, just like Eren. The difference? Eren had Armin and Mikasa to soften his anger. Gabi only had Falco, another kid, drowning in Marley’s lies.

The Sasha Incident: Why Fans Can’t Forgive

Yes, Gabi killed Sasha, one of our beloved characters, but let’s be honest: Attack on Titan is a story about war, and war isn’t fair. Sasha wasn’t entirely innocent, she was a soldier who fought in the Liberio raid, where Marleyan civilians, including children, were caught in the crossfire. Gabi didn’t attack Paradis out of pure malice; she did it out of revenge and everything she’d been taught growing up.

This is the cycle AOT warns about: violence breeding more violence. Gabi pulling the trigger on Sasha is no different than Eren crushing civilians in Liberio. Both are kids lashing out at a world that hurt them first. But because Sasha was beloved, Gabi became the scapegoat.

Gabi’s Redemption: The Braus Family Effect

Gabi’s turning point comes when she meets the Braus family - Sasha’s parents. Instead of attacking her, they show her kindness. For the first time, Gabi sees Eldians from Paradis as people, not demons. She breaks down, realizing everything she was taught was a lie.

ALSO READ: Attack on Titan: Why Mikasa Was The Key To Ending The Titan Curse?

This mirrors Eren’s moment with Ramzi, the refugee boy. Both see the cost of their rage, but Gabi actually changes. She risks her life to save Kaya, Sasha’s adoptive sister, and fights to protect Falco. By the end, she’s not a hero, she’s a traumatized kid trying to do better.

The Double Standard: Why Eren Gets A Pass

Fans forgive Eren for genocide, but hate Gabi for one kill. Why? Because Eren is the protagonist. We saw his pain, his losses, his reasons. Gabi is the enemy, so her pain is invisible. But Gabi’s story is supposed to make us uncomfortable, to show that the devils we hate are just like us.

Eren kills billions, Gabi kills one, yet Gabi is called a psycho while fans make TikTok edits crying over Eren’s final moments. Attack on Titan’s whole point is that no one is purely evil, not even the guy who ends the world. Gabi is living proof of that lesson.

Final Verdict: Gabi Is Attack on Titan's Most Human Character

Gabi isn’t bad. She’s a 12-year-old girl trapped in a cycle of hatred, trying to survive. Her anger, her mistakes, and her growth make her Attack on Titan’s most realistic character.

The hate she gets says more about fans than Gabi. We’re quick to judge the other side without empathy, exactly what the story condemns. So next time you rewatch AOT, ask yourself: If Gabi is a monster, what does that make Eren?